Cheers erupted when Steele talked about firing Pelosi, the speaker of the House. If Republicans regain the majority in November – and pundits say it could happen – Pelosi would lose that post.

Leondray Gholston, vice chairman of the state GOP, introduced various candidates at the Pelosi pep rally, after noting, “We are strong, we are moving forward and we are going to win and win convincingly here.”

“We’ve got every Democrat in the country on the defensive and that hasn’t happened in a while,” Gholston said.

Update: Some readers have reported error messages from the Colorado Department of Revenue when they try to update registrations with the Secretary of State. State officials confirm the problem, saying that with some users, the motor vehicle office computers aren’t communicating properly with the voter registration database. They suggest, for now, using the printout function to make a paper copy of the change form, then faxing it or delivering it in person.

The dedicated political readers who find their way here may not need the reminder to register by Monday, or to ask for their mail-in ballot. But spread the word among those who haven’t paid as much attention, deadlines are looming for Coloradans who want their voices heard this fall.

Local election offices will begin sending out ballots the week of Oct. 11. There will also be on-site voting at many precincts, on election day Nov. 2 and for the previous two weeks by early voting. Denver, for example, will begin early in-person voting on Oct. 18.

But to use any of those methods, voters must be registered by Monday, Oct. 4. Anyone with a valid Colorado driver’s license may register online at GoVoteColorado.com. The secretary of state’s office says more than 21,000 voters have registered or have updated their registration using the state’s online system.

Colorado election officials expect more than 60 percent of the ballots cast in this year’s general election will come in by mail.

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Major party candidates automatically stand for a primary election — even if they’re unopposed — ahead of the general election. And because they technically run in two races, they can raise twice as much money.

Minor party candidates only stand for a primary election — and can only raise twice as much — if they’re challenged by one of their own.

The technicality was a surprise to GOP Chairman Dick Wadhams, who called it “more bad news.”

Denver District Judge Brian Whitney today ordered that, no later than Oct. 8, anti-tax crusader Douglas Bruce sit for a deposition and answer questions about his involvement in getting Amendments 60 and 61 and Proposition 101 on the ballot. The measures would cut state and local taxes by billions and prohibit the state from any kind of borrowing while severely limiting borrowing by local governments.

Testimony from people whose names are listed as proponents of the three measures indicated they received the language for the three measures from an email address used by Bruce and that the former Republican lawmaker from Colorado Springs advised them on legal matters.

No campaign finance reports were filed with the state indicating the source of money to gather signatures for the three measures.

Over seven months, Bruce has repeatedly been spared from having to testify about his role in the initiatives, arguing that he wasn’t properly served (after 30 attempts by the state to serve him) and avoiding contempt-of-court penalties for his actions. Then, after Whitney ordered that he sit for a deposition by Sept. 28, Bruce argued his First Amendment rights would be violated by having to disclose whether he was involved with the issues.

Whitney rejected that argument last week, but the deposition deadline came and went, with Bruce’s attorney asking for another extension to Oct. 8 to hold the deposition. Whitney today issued an order calling for Bruce to testify by that day.

The revelation came during a “Colorado Decides” debate hosted by CBS4 Denver and KBDI Channel 12 between Stapleton and the Democratic incumbent, Treasurer Cary Kennedy. The debate airs 9:30 p.m. Friday evening on KBDI.

“Yes, I made a big mistake about 11 years ago,” Stapleton said. “I got a DUI, which I regret. I served my time in terms of community service and moved on. I don’t think it has a lot to do with being treasurer.”

Stapleton, 36, said later that the incident happened in San Francisco in June of 1999 after he’d been drinking one night. He said he was driving in the city when a taxi cab ran a blinking yellow light and struck his vehicle. Stapleton said he drove about a block and pulled over, with the police showing up later.

Of 45 governors scored, Ritter rated fifth from the bottom, just above Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn of Illinois but below Gov. Chris Gregoire of Washington, also a Democrat.

“Gov. Ritter has focused on raising taxes and undermining the budget restraints built into the state constitution’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights,” the report said. “In 2008, he campaigned in favor of a ballot measure to increase severance taxes on oil production, but that proposal was defeated at the ballot box.

“In 2009, Ritter signed into law measures to broaden the sales tax base and helped repeal the Arveschoug-Bird limit on general fund spending increases. This year, Ritter is campaigning against a series of tax limitation measures that will appear on the November ballot. He also signed into law increases in hospital taxes, property taxes, and taxes on medical marijuana. Ritter has a poor record on spending as well, proposing budget increases in recent years despite the poor state of the economy.”

Ritter is on trip to Denmark and Finland this week to promote clean technology companies in Colorado, but his spokesman, Evan Dreyer, was elated by Cato’s grade.

A judge today threw out a legal challenge to the state’s Blue Book voter guide brought by supporters of an anti-abortion amendment on the November ballot.

Amendment 62 would define a human as a person “from the beginning of the biological development of that human being.” Supporters argue the language of the 2010 Blue Book is biased against the amendment and presents a number of false arguments in opposition to the measure, and they sued the Legislative Council, the research arm of the legislature that writes the voter guide.

In throwing out the lawsuit, Denver District Judge Robert Hyatt agreed with arguments by Legislative Council attorneys that the courts had no say in the matter because writing the Blue Book is a legislative function. Though staff writes the voter guide, a committee of legislators must approve it.

And even if the courts could do something, it’s too late, Hyatt said. Lawmakers earlier this month approved the final draft of the Blue Book, which is being mailed to 1.8 million Coloradans.

“Everyone in this room has probably received their Blue Book,” Hyatt said. “This court is in no position to wander around the state picking them up.”

This might be Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper’s first time at the rodeo – or at least, his first time in the chute.

In his latest lighthearted TV spot, the Democratic gubernatorial candidate dudes up in leather riding gear and saunters over to where a bronco awaits him.

“Everybody tells me I have to ride a horse in a political ad,” says Hickenlooper, grimacing comically as he climbs atop the horse.

Hickelooper also touts his resume in the ad, saying he’s created jobs as a businessman and cut costs and deficit as mayor. The 30-second spot called “Rodeo” is airing on cable and network television and is part of the campaign’s earlier $1.3 million ad buy, said spokesman George Merritt.

Which brings us to our Quote of the Day, courtesy of the Pueblo Chieftain:

“I did feel like we had an opportunity earlier this month for Dan Maes and Tom Tancredo to step aside and let one candidate challenge Mayor Hickenlooper. But that didn’t happen, so I stand behind Dan Maes as our nominee.” — Dick Wadhams

Joey Bunch has been a reporter for 28 years, including the last 12 at The Denver Post. For various newspapers he has covered the environment, water issues, politics, civil rights, sports and the casino industry.